1. Technical Field
This invention relates generally to geriatrics and other conditions making it difficult for people to bend over for dressing purposes. It relates more particularly to a sock holding dressing aid that facilitates the task of donning a sock.
2. Description of Related Art
Various sock holding devices (sock holders) exist in the prior art. They aid users put on their socks without having to bend over. Reference may be made to U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,860,156; 4,482,084; 5,050,783; 5,626,269; 5,636,774; 5,687,889; 5,799,844; and 6,276,578 for a sampling. All the various sock holder designs described in those patents and elsewhere indicate that the need for a sock holder is well recognized. However, just the right combination of feel, functionality, ease of use, cost, and appearance remains elusive, and so the need for a suitable sock holder continues.
It is an object of the present invention to overcome some of the drawbacks of prior art sock holders. This object is achieved by providing a sock holding dressing aid having a resiliently deformable U-shaped sock-holding member with cuff-engaging flanges and flexible straps. The cuff-engaging flanges are easy to position so that they securely hold the cuff of a sock open, while being easily removed from the cuff once the sock is on the user""s foot. The flexible straps are convenient to use in pulling the sock onto the foot, while being readily rolled up around the U-shaped member for storage in a compact configuration suitable for the dresser drawer or luggage.
To paraphrase some of the more precise language appearing in the claims, a sock-holding dressing aid constructed according to the invention, for a person to use in donning a sock having a cuff onto a foot of the person, includes means for holding the cuff of the sock in an expanded position ahead of the foot of the user in order to facilitate insertion of the foot into the sock. The means for doing so includes a U-shaped member having a semicircularly shaped base portion and first and second side portions extending forwardly from the semicircularly shaped base portion. The sock-holding dressing aid also includes means for enabling the person to pull the U-shaped member toward the person in order to pull the sock onto the foot of the person without the person having to bend over toward the foot. That is accomplished with first and second straps connected to respective ones of the first and second side portions of the U-shaped member.
According to one aspect of the invention, the first and second straps are composed of a flexible material such that the user can wind the straps around the U-shaped member into a storage configuration. According to another aspect, the U-shaped member includes means for gripping the cuff of the sock in the form of first and second flanges that extend sidewardly from respective ones of the first and second side portions of the U-shaped member. They function to grip the cuff of the sock while also facilitating release of the cuff by action of the person tilting the base portion of the U-shaped member downwardly. Preferably, the U-shaped member is composed of a resiliently deformable material (e.g., metal) such that the user can resiliently deform the U-shaped member slightly from a non-deformed shape in order to place the cuff of the sock over the flanges, and then allow the U-shaped member to recover toward the non-deformed shape and thereby hold the cuff in the expanded position.